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Title 



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Book 




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t;tr 

GENTLEMAN'S 

POCKE -I ARRIER: 

SHOWING 

HOW TO USE YOUR HORSE 
ONA JOURNEY', 

AND 

WHAT REMEDIES A.RE PROPER FOR COMMON ACCIDENTS 
THAT MAY BEFAL HiM ON THE ROAD. 



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f) 



BY F. TUFFNELL, Veterinary Surgeon. 



The. remedies this little* tract prescribes are 
tained, and never fail of a cure where the 
therefore, no man who values uis horse shou'd presume to travel 
without it. 



simple, and easily ob-/|\ 
le disorder is curable;', j! 



i 



i' , LTIMORE: 

JOm^ PLASKITT. 

1836. 




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THE 



GENTLEMAN'S 

POCKET-FARRIER: 



SHEWING 



HOW TO USE YOUR HORSE 

ON A JOURNEY, 



WHAT REMEDIES ARE PROPER FOR COMMON ACCI 
DENTS -THAT MAY BEFAL HIM ON THE ROAD. 



By F. TUFFNELL, Veterinary Surgeon. 



The remedies this little tract prescribes are simple, and easily obtained, 
and never fail of a cure where the disorder is curable ; therefore no 
man who values his horse should presume to travel without it. 



BALTIMORE: 

PUBLISHED BY JOHN PLASKITT, 

NO. 218, MARKET STREET, 

1836. 






h 



S0URC1 

SEP 18 



STEREOTYPED AT THE 
LANCASTER STEREOTYPE FOUNDRY. 



ADVERTISEMENT. 



f - 

It may not be unnecessary to acquaint the 
reader that the following prescriptions have 
not been hastily jumbled together, but are ex- 
perimentally efficacious. 

A great many books have been written on 
farriery, but their rules are too many for the 
pocket. Such a book, therefore, as this, is 
necessary on a journey, in order to refer to as 
occasion requires ; and it contains as much as is 
known by any of our common farriers. 

As small as this tract may appear, it will be 
found to inform gentlemen, 

I. What methods are best to be used, if Uieir 
horses fall lame ; 

II. What medicines are proper to give them, 
when sick ; and 

III. How to direct the operations, and escape 
the impositions, of ignorant men. 

In short, by the help of this treatise, gen- 
tlemen will be able to prevent a groom or farrier 



IV ADVERTISEMENT. 

from injuring their horses by improper applica- 
tions, and mistaking one distemper for another. 
The recipes are few and cheap ; the poultice 
but one ; and contrived on purpose to prevent 
trouble and expense, by pointing out the best 
remedies at first, such as are easiest to be got, 
and such as make the speediest cures ; and the 
reader may be assured they have been experi- 
mentally confirmed by a practice of sixty years. 
The book is drawn up in a manner calculated 
for a gentleman's pocket, supposing him upon a 
journey ; and no man who values his horse 
should travel without it. 



THE 

GENTLEMAN'S POCKET-FARRIER 



Queis gratior usus Equorum, 

Nocturna versate manu, versate diurna. 



TRY BEFORE YOU BUY. 

If you meet with a horse you like, and are desirous of 
buying' him, do not fall in love with him before you ride him, 
for though he may be handsome, he may start or stumble. 

TO DISCOVER A STUMBEER. 

Tf you goto buy of one that knows you, it is not unreason- 
able to desire to ride him for an hour. If refused, you may 
suspect he has some faults 3 if not, mount him at the door of 
the stable where he stands ; let him neither feel your spurs, 
nor see your whip; mount him easily, and when seated, go 
gently off with a loose rein, which will make him careless; 
and if he is a stumbler, he will discover himself presently, 
especially if the road in which you ride him be any thing 
rough. 

l^he best horse indeed may stumble (a young one of spirit, 
if not properly broken in, will frequently ; and yet if he moves 
nimbly upon the bit, dividing his legs true, he may become a 
very good saddle-horse) ; the best horse, I say, may stumble ; 
but if he springs out, when he stumbles, as if lie feared your 
whip or spur, depend upon it he is an old offender. A horse 
should never be struck for stumbling, or starting ; the pro- 
vocation, I confess, is great, but the tear of correction makes 
him worse. 

In the purchase of a horse, examine four things — his teeth, 
his eyes, his legs, and his wind. 
3a 



(5 THE GENTLEMAN'S 



TO KNOW HIS AGE. 

Every treatise on farriery has instructed us to know a 
horse's age by the mark in his mouth ; but not one in five 
hundred (a dealer excepted) can retain it in his mind. I 
have endeavoured, therefore, to represent it by a plate. 

Every horse has six teeth before in each jaw ; till he is 
two years and a half old, they are all smooth and uniform in 
their upper surfaces. (See the frontispiece.) 

At two years and a half old he sheds the two middle teeth, 
(by the young teeth's rising and forcing the old ones out, as 
at fig. 1) which at three years old are replaced by two hollow 
ones, as at fig. 7. 

When he is about three years and a half old, he sheds two 
others, one on each side the two middle ones, which at four 
years old are replaced by two others, which are also hollow, 
as at fig. 8. 

The sharp single teeth in horses, (fig. 2) begin to appear 
in the lower jaw when the horse is about three years and a 
half, or four years old. When he is nearly six years old, 
they are full grown, pointed, and concave in the inside, as at 
fig. 3. 

When he is four years and a half old, he sheds the two 
corner teeth, which at five are replaced also with two hollow 
ones, grooved on the inside, as at fig. 4, which groove marks 
the age precisely. 

At six years of age this groove begins to fill up, and dis- 
appear, as at fig. 6; so do the hollows of the rest of the teeth, 
which continue till near seven and a half, or eight years old, 
when all the teeth become uniformly full and smooth, as at 
fig. 5. 

Crafty jockeys will sometimes burn holes in the teeth, to 
make tliem appear young, which they call bishoping ; but a 
discerning eye will soon discover the cheat. 

EYES. 

If a horse's eyes are lively and clear, and you can see to 
the bottom, and the image of your face be reflected from 
thence, and not from the surface of the eye, they are good 3 
but if muddy, cloudy, or coal black, they are bad. 



POCKET-FARRTER 



LEGS. 



If his knees are not broken, nor stand bending and trem- 
bling forward (which is called knuckling,) his legs may be 
good 5 but if he steps short, and digs his toes in the ground, 
it is a sign he will knuckle. In short, if the hoof be pretty 
flat and not curled, you need not fear a founder. 



WIND. 

If his flanks beat even and slow, his wind may oe good, but 
if they heave' double and irregular, or if (while he stands in 
the stable) he blows at the nostrils, as if he had just been 
galloping, they are signs of a broken wind. Deceitful dealers 
have a draught which they sometimes give, to make a horse 
breathe regularly in the stable ; the surest way therefore to 
judge of his wind, is to give him a good brushing gallop, and 
it is ten to one, if his wind be broken, or even touched, that 
he will cough and wheeze very much, and no medicine can 
prevent him doing so. 

,CURE FOR A BROKEN WIND. 

A broken wind may be cured, if the following be applied 
on the discovery of it : — A quarter of a pound of common 
tar, and the like quantity of honey ; beat them well together 
then dissolve them in a quart of new milk ; let the hor.Sc 
fast two hours before 30U give the drench 5 walk him an 
hour after, and let hiin fast two hours ; give this drench 
every second day with warm meat and drink. 

A DRAUGHT-HORSE. 

A horse with thick shoulders and a broad chest laden with 
flesh, hanging too forward, and heavily projecting over his 
knees and feet, is fitter for a collar than a saddle. 

A SADDLE-HORSE. 

A horse with thin shoulders, and a flat chest, whose fore- 
feet stand boldly forward and even, his neck rising semi- 



8 THE 

circularly from the points of those thin shoulders to his head, 
may justly be said to have a light fore-hand, and be fitter for 
a saddle than a collar. As most horses in the hands of farm- 
ers are drawn white they are young, which, notwithstanding 
their make, occasions them to move heavily ; if you desire a 
nimble-footed horse, choose one that has never drawn. 

In buying a horse, inquire into four other things, viz.— 
biting, kicking, stopping, and starting. 

A horse may be sound, though guilty of all four, which a 
man can hardly discover by barely looking on him ; so I refer 
you to his keeper. 

When you are buying, it is common for the owner to say 
in praise of his horse, that he has neither splint, spavin, nor 
windgall. 

That you may not be imposed upon, those three aie thus 
described : 

THE SPLINT. 

The splint is a fixed callous excrescence or hard knob, grow- 
ing upon the flat of the in or outside (and sometimes both) of 
the shark-bone ; a little under, and not far from the knee, 
and may be seen and felt. 

To take it off", shave the part, and beat it with a stick, 
prick it with a nail in a flat stick, clap on a blistering plaster 
as strong as you can make it; let it lie on three days ; then 
take it off, and rub the place with half a drachm of the oil of 
origanum, and as much oil of vitriol, mixed : if the first does not 
do, rub it a second time with the oils; if you find any re- 
mains of the splint, apply a second blistering plaster for 
twenty-four hours : walk him moderately to prevent any 
swelling or excrescence from settling. 

Most young horses have splints, more or less, and they 
will occasion lameness while they are coming upon the bone ; 
but after they are grown to the firmness of bones, they do 
not lame a horse, nor is such a horse worse for use, though 
he may not look so well to the eye. 

THE SPAVIN. 

The spavin is of the same nature, and appears, in like man- 
ner, on the instep bone behind, not far below the hough. To 



POCKET-FARRIER. 



9 



take it off, beat the bone with a bleeding stick, and rub it ; 
then anoint it with the oil of origanum, tie a wet cloth about 
it, and with a hot brick applied to it, soak in the oil, till it be 
dry. 

WINDGALL. 

Windfalls are several little swellings just above the fet- 
lock joints of all the four legs ; they seem, when felt, to be 
full of wind or jelly, but they never lame ahorse; the splint 
and spavin always do. They all three proceed from one and 
the same cause, which is hard riding, travelling too far in 
one day, or carrying too great a weight when young. 

SETTING OUT ON A JOURNEY. 

Whenever you intend to travel, hunt, or only ride out for 
the air, let your horse's feet be examined some time before, 
to see that his shoes are all fast and sit easy on his feet, for 
on that depends the pleasure and safety of your journey. 

DIRECTIONS FOR MOUNTING. 

Before you mount, look round your horse, to see if his 
bridle, curb, saddle, and girths, are all fitted in their proper 
places. Always accustom your horse to stand firm and with- 
out a motion, till you are fixed in your seat, and your clothes 
be adjusted. 

DIRECTIONS FOR GOING. 

When you would have him go, teach him to move by 
pressing close your knees, or speaking to him, without using 
whip or spur ; for a horse will learn anything ; and a good 
quality may as easily be taught him as a bad one. 

CORRECTION ILL-TIMED. CORRECTION WELL-TIMED. 
AN EASY REIN. 

Most men whip and spur a horse, to make him go faster, 
before they bid him ; but it is cruel treatment to beat a gen- 



10 THE GENTLEMAN'S 

«rous creature before you have signified your mind to him 
(by some token which he may be taught to understand) who 
would obey you if he knew your pleasure 5 it is time enough 
to correct him when he refuses, or resists you. Do not haul 
his head about with too tight a rein 7 it deadens his mouth ; 
besides, he will carry you safer, and take better care of his 
steps with an easy hand, than a heavy one : much depends 
on the quietness of the bridle hand. Keep your elbows 
steady, and you cannot hurt his mouth. Again, nothing dis- 
covers a bad horseman (even at a distance) so much as throw- 
ing his arms and legs about ; for it is easiest to the horse and 
rider, and he can carry you farther by ten miles a day, when 
you sit as steady upon him as if you were a part of himself. 

CUTTING. 

If he cuts either before .or behind, look that his shoes stand 
not with an edge beyond the hoof, and feel that the clinches 
of the nails lie close ; but if cutting proceeds from interfer- 
ing, that is, crossing his legs in his trot, it is a natural in- 
firmity, and can only be a little helped by care. Horses will 
sometimes cut, when leg weary, which they will recover of 
by rest. If you would not have a horse that cuts, buy not 
one that stands with his toes turned outwards, nor one who, 
in trotting, carries his legs too jeear each other. 

LAMENESS. — A POULTICE. 

If (as he stands in the stable) you observe him to point 
one foot forwarder than the other, either before or behind, 
seeming to bear no weight on it, you may reasonably con- 
clude he is not easy. If the shoe is the cause, the farrier 
can remove it presently ; but if the foot is hurt by some un- 
known accident, make a poultice of any sort of greens, such 
as lettuce, cabbage, mallow leaves, turnip-tops, or turnips 
themselves, the best of all 5 boil them tender, squeeze the 
water out. chop them in a wooden bowl, with two or three 
ounces of hog's lard or butter; put this poultice into a cloth, 
and tie his foot in it all night, as hot as you can. 

In the morning when the farrier comes to take off his shoe. 



POCKET-FARRIER. II 

he will find his hoof cut soft and easy, so that he will soon 
discover (in paring with his buttrice) whether he is pricked 
or bruised. 

BRUISED. 

If bruised only, the next poultice will cure him 

PRICKED.— GRAVELLED.— THE CURE. 

If pricked, or otherwise wounded to th equick, open the 
hole with a penknife, and drop a little diachilon or melilot, 
through a pair of warm tongs, into the hole, to suck out the 
gravel ; but the horse-ointment is best, which I shall men- 
tion by and by ; cover it close with dry tow, fastened in with 
a couple of splints, and put his foot, as before, into a hot 
poultice. 

Repeat this till he is well, which will be in two nights, if 
you have not been too free with your penknife. 

A CAUTION AGAINST THE FARRIER. 

But let not the farrier put flaming turpentine to it, which 
will close the hole before the gravel is out : in this case, it 
must work out at the coronet above, and may require six 
months' time to cure it. 

LAME IN THE HEEL OR HOOF. — A CURE. 

If your horse is lame with a hole in his heel, or any part 
of his hoof, be it ever so deep, occasioned by an over-reach 
of his hind foot, or a tread of another horse, though gravel 
be in it, put his foot into the aforesaid poultice, and repeat 
it mornings and evenings till it is well ; for it will suck it 
out, fill it again with sound flesh, and make the hoof grow 
over it, much sooner than any other method or medicine 
whatsoever. 

A CAUTION. 

The farriers' practice is to put caustics into such holes (a 
composition of mercury, lime, vitriol, and the like) to burn 



12 THE GENTLEMAN'S 

them ; and to cut a quarter of the hoof away, to come to the 
bottom, as they say, which requires about six months to make 
it good again 5 but oftener ends, if not always, in an unsound 
club foot. 

CUTS, TREADS, AND BRUISES, CURED. 

All cuts, treads, and bruises, are cured by this poultice 3 
not only soonest and safest, but without leaving any mark. 

THE HORSE OINTMENT. 

Into a clean pipkin, that holds a quart, put the bigness of 
a pullet's egg of yellow rosin 5 when it is melted over a mid- 
dling fire, add the same quantity of bees-wax 5 when that is 
melted put in half a pound of hog's lard ; when it is dissolved, 
put in two ounces of honey 5 when that is dissolved put in half 
a pound of common turpentine ; keep it gently boiling, stir- 
ring it with a stick all the time ; when the turpentine is dis- 
solved, put in two ounces of verdigris ; you must take off 
the pipkin (else it will rise into the fire in a moment), set it on 
again, and give it two or three wambles, and strain it, through 
a coarse sieve, into a clean vessel for use, throwing the dregs 
away. 

This is an extraordinary ointment for a wound or bruise 
in flesh or hoof, broken knees, galled backs, bites, cracked 
heels, mallenders, or, when you geld a horse, to heal and 
keep the flies away ; nothing takes fire out of a burn or scald 
in human flesh so soon ; I have had personal experience of 
it. I had it out of Degrey ; but, finding it apt to heal a wound 
at the top, before the bottom was sound, I improved it, by 
adding an ounce of verdigris. 

HEAT BALLS. 

If, upon a journey, any little bumps, called heat-balls, 
should rise on your horse's shoulder or any part of him : upon 
coming to your inn, order the hostler to rub them often with 
hot vinegar, which will disperse them. They are owing to 
the heat of the body in hard riding. If they are not dispersed, 
they will burst and look ugly, and it will be some time before 
the hair comes upon the part again. 



POCKET-FARRIER. 13 

SWELLED AND CRACKED HEELS. 

If his legs and heels should swell and crack, and become 
stilfand sore, so that he can hardly be got out of the stable 
in the morning, and perhaps did not lie down all night 5 you 
may travel on, but walk him for the first mile or two, very 
gently, till the swelling falls, and he begins to feel his legs. 

CURE. 

When you end the day's journey, wash his fore-legs with 
warm water, and a great deal of soap ; or foment his heels 
(first cutting away the hair very close) with old urine, pretty 
warm, for a quarter of an hour, by dipping a woollen cloth, 
or an old stocking, into the urine, squeezing it, and then ap- 
plying it to the part affected, having first well washed it with 
the urine. You may then prepare the poultice, as in page 
10, and tie it on hot, as soon as it can be got ready, letting it 
stay on all night. Feed him as usual, and offer him warm 
water in the house. About nine or ten o'clock (that is, an 
hour or two after he is put up for all night, and fed) give him 

A BALL. 

Half an ounce of ^Ethiop's mineral; ditto of balsam of 
sulphur terib ; ditto of diapente or powdered aniseed ; mixed 
and made into a ball with honey or treacle. You may give 
him a pint of warm ale after it. 

Do not stir him out of the stable, on any account what- 
ever, till you mount him the next morning for your journey; 
and give him a draught of warm water in the stable before 
you set out (that being proper on account of the ball). When 
you are on the road, he may drink water as usual. 

The next night omit the ball, but continue the poultice. 
The third night give the second ball. 

GREASING HEELS. 

The fifth night give the third ball, and still continue the 
poultice till his heels are well : but, if you can get no sort of 
poulticing, then melt hog's lard, or butter, and, with a rabbit's 
foot, or a rag, grease his heels with it very hot. 



14 THE GENTLEMAN'S 

If he is a young horse, and the distemper new. you will 
hear no more of it ; but if he is old. and has had it a long time 
on him. it will require further repetition. 

N. B. During- this operation, you must not gallop on the 
road, but ride moderately, for sweating- will retard the cure. 
You must consider that wet weather, and wet roads, are by 
no means proper for this regimen. 

Travelling, indeed, is an improper time for this cure, ex- 
cept in cases of necessity : if you can give your horse rest. 
his heels will get well sooner by turning him out to grass, 
and renewing the poultices : but he should be kept in the 
stable while he takes the medicine. If the greasy poultice 
does not effect a cure, which may sometimes be the case, 
after fomenting the legs with the urine, anoint his heels well 
with the following ointment warm everv night. Take ten 
eggs, boil them very hard, put them into cold water; when 
cold, separate the yolks from the whites, put all the yolks 
into a frying-pan. bruise them with a spoon over the fire till 
they turn black and yield a foetid oil. which decant off, and 
mix it. while warm, with two ounces of honey, and two 
ounces of white lead in powder, and then keep it for use. It 
should be heated into a horse's heels, with a fire-shovel. 
The heels in the day-time should be constantly well rubbed. 
This ointment exceeds any thing that can be applied for a 
burn or scald in the human body, if applied soon after the 
accident, and the part affected be anointed for an hour after, 
by times, with a feather. 

I have often cured a horse of greasy heels by giving him 
only an ounce and a half of saltpetre pounded fine, or dis- 
solved and mixed with his corn, morning- and evening. But 
this must be continued for a month or more, till his legs are 
well j but they should be kept washed as above. If you give 
a horse five or six pounds of saltpetre, in this manner, it will 
not hurt him ; it will free him from all sorts of humours, and 
put him into excellent spirits. 

MALLENDEK. 

The mallender is a crack in the bend of the knee ; it oozes 
a sharp humour like that at the heels or frush ; a horse dare 



POCKET-FARRIER. 15 

not step out for fear of tearing it wider; it is so painful it 
takes away his belly; it makes him step short, and stum- 
ble much. 



THE CURE. 

The same method, medicine, greasing, and poulticing, 
which you used for swelled or cracked heels, will cure it. 

SELLENDER, AND CURE. 

The sellender is a crack in the bend of the hough ; and 
must be cured with the same things, and after the same 
manner. 

SORE BACK, AND CURE. 

If the saddle bruises his back, and makes it swell, a greasy 
dish-clout laid on hot, and a cloth or rag over it, bound on a 
quarter of an hour (with a circingle) and repeated once or 
twice, will sink it flat. 

If it is slight, wash it with a little water and salt only ; but 
you must have the saddle altered, that it does not press 
upon the tender part ; for a second bruise will be worse 
than the first. If his furniture does not fit and sit easy, it will 
damp him ; but if nothing wound or hurt him, he will travel 
with courage. 

ADVICE FOR WATERING. 

Make it a standing rule to water on the way before you 
arrive at the baiting place, be it noon or night ; if there is 
no water by the way, do not (when once you have entered 
the stable) suffer any man to lead him out to a river or horse- 
pond, to wash his legs or drink, but give him warm water 
in the house. 

If you ride moderately, you ought to let your horse drink 
at any time on the way ; you may trust him, he will not take 
harm, but always refresh himself: but, if he has been long 
without water, and is hot, he will then over-drink himself, 



16 THE GENTLEMAN'S 

and it may spoil him ; because a load of cold water, greedily 
swallowed while he is hot, will certainly chill and deaden 
the tone of the stqmach ; but two or three go-downs are 
really necessary to cool his mouth, and may be allowed him 
at any time on the road. 

DIFFICULTY OF STALING. 

Sometimes a horse cannot stale, and will be in great pain 
to ease himself; take half a ounce of aniseed, beaten fine in 
a mortar, one handful of parsley roots ; boil those in a quart 
of old strong beer, and strain it off, and give it him warm. 

HARD RIDING. SURFEIT. 

If you ride hard, and go in hot, your horse will be off his 
stomach ; then is your time to guard against a surfeit, which 
is always attended with the grease, the farcy, or both; the 
symptoms are, staring of the coat, and hide-bound. 

STARING COAT AND HIDE-BOUND. THE ANISEED 
CORDIAL. 

Staring of the coat will appear the very next morning. 
To prevent which, as soon as you dismount, rub him well, 
cover him, pick his feet, throw a handful or two of beans 
before him, and litter him deep. Go immediately and boil, 
for a cordial, half a pound of aniseed in a quart of ale, pour 
it upon half a pound of honey, into a bowl or basin, brew it 
about till it is almost as cool as blood, then give it (with a 
horn) seeds and all. 

THE CURE. 

Feed as usual, but keep him warm clothed ; give him 
warm water that night, and next morning ; a mash will do 
well that night, and, lest the cordial should not have force 
enough to carry off the surfeit, you must give him (after 
all, and just before bed-time) one of those balls directed in 
page 13. 



POCKET-FARRIER. 17 

To prevent stiffness, supple and wash his legs with greasy 
dish-wash, or water and soap, as hot as a man can bear his 
hand in it, with a dish-clout ; and by no means take him out 
of the stable that night. Grease his hoofs, and stop his feet 
with the following ball : it is safe and innocent. 

A BALL TO STOP FEET. 

Two or three handfuls of bran put into a little saucepan, 
with as much grease of any kind as will moisten it. Let it 
cool, and put a ball of it into each fore foot. 

Cover each ball with a little tow or straw, and put a couple 
of splints over that, to keep it in all night. This do every 
night if you please throughout your journey; it is good at 
any time if he lie still : but these balls are not necessary in 
the winter, or when the roads are full of water. 

A CAUTION AGAINST HOSTLERS. 

Ever avoid all stuffings made of cow-dung, clay, and 
urine, which you find ready mixed in a tub, in the custody 
of almost every hostler ; such cold stuffings benumb the feet 
to that degree, that the horse fumbles and steps short for 
two or three miles, till he gets a little warmth, and feels 
his feet again. 

SHOULDER-SLIP. 

If you wrench his shoulder, mix two ounces of the oil of 
spike with one ounce of the oil of swallows, and half an 
ounce of turpentine, and with your hands rub a little of it 
all over the shoulder. It will be best to warm the oils well 
with a broad-mouth fire-shovel, or plate of iron, hot. Then 
bleed him, and let him rest two days. This will cure a 
slight strain. Should he continue lame you may travel on, 
but slowly, and he will grow well upon the road ; but repeat 
the oils. 

A CAUTION AGAINST BORING AND FIRING. 

Some farriers cut a hole through the skin in the middle of 
the shoulder, and (with the shank of a tobacco-pipe) blow it, 



18 THE GENTLEMAN'S 

as a butcher does a shoulder of veal ; then they run a flat, 
cold iron, like a horseman's sword-blade, eight or ten inches 
up, between his shoulder-blade and his ribs (which they call 
boring;) after that, they burn him round the shoulder with a 
hot iron, and cross it like a glass window ; next they lay a 
charge all over the shoulder, (which is a composition of 
pitch, rosin, and tar) then put a patten shoe on the contrary 
foot, and in that condition turn him to grass. 

I cannot say I ever knew a horse cured by this method ; 
but I have known many a one lame ever after; for they 
never get clear of the stiffness which the boring and firing 
leave in the shoulder ; a tender hearted man would be shock- 
ed at the cruelty of this invention 5 for all that can be obtain- 
ed, is a free discharge of the humours (occasioned by the 
wrench) which may lodge between the shoulder-blade and 
the ribs 5 for which you will find roweling alone sufficient. 

A CAUTION AGAINST ORIGANUM. 

Most farriers will endeavour to persuade you to use oil of 
origanum in all cases of strains ; but I am against that also, 
by experience ; it is too hot and subtle, and by frequent 
application will insinuate itself into the bone, and make 
it brittle. 

I saw one instance, when the thickest bone in a horse 
(between the shoulder-blade and the elbow) broke, while a 
servant led him a foot-pace in hand. The farrier confessed 
he had used much of that oil. 

STIFLE. THE CURE. 

If you strain your horse in the stifle, a little bone upon the 
thigh bone, above the inside bend of the hough, (you find 
such another in a leg of mutton) the turnip poultice will in- 
fallibly cure ; but you may rub in the oils first, as ordered in 
a shoulder-slip. By its situation you may find a difficulty to 
keep the poultice on ; yet it may be done with a few yards 
of list. If it is not well, or very much mended, in two or 
three days, examine the hip ; perhaps you may find it there ; 
but this must be cured by oiling, as in a shoulder-slip, for 
the poultice cannot be fastened on there. 



POCKET-FARRIER. 19 

A CLAP IN THE BACK SINEWS. 

When lameness arises from a clap in the back sinews, 
which is relaxation of the sinews from a strain, take a spoon- 
ful or two of hog's lard, or rather goose grease ; melt it in a 
saucepan, and rub it into the back sinew, very hot, from the 
bend of the knee to the fetlock 5 make (as you are directed 
in page 10) a turnip poultice, and tie it on hot, from ihe 
fetlock to above the knee, and let it stay on all night ; thus, 
first tie the cloth about the fetlock, then put in the poultice, 
and raise the cloth and poultice together, till you get it above 
the bend of the knee, twisting the list or string round his leg 
as you rise, and fasten it above the knee 5 take it oft' in the 
morning, and put on a fresh one 5 at night do the same. 
Two or three of these poultices will cure a new strain, five 
or six an old one. 

HOW TO KNOW A SHOULDER-SLIP FROM A STRAIN 
IN THE BACK SINEWS. 

This lameness, by ignorant farriers, is frequently taken 
for a shoulder-slip, and in consequence of this, they proceed 
to blowing, boring, and roweling, and thus make your horse 
useless for a long time. Be not imposed upon : be sure it is 
in his shoulder, before you admit the operation. 

If it is in his shoulder, he will drag his toe on the ground 
as he walks. 

If in the back sinew, he will lift it off and step short, 
though downright lame. 

There does not happen above one shoulder-slip to fifty 
back sinew strains. 

A COLD. — A RUNNING OF THE EYES AND NOSTRILS. 

You may know if your horse has caught cold, by a running 
at his eyes, and a little gleeting at his nostrils ; though it is 
impossible to know exactly how he came by it (for standing 
near a hole, a window, or door, a damp new-built stable, 
and many other ways, may do it) yet I would warn you 
against one practice in particular, too much in use, which 
seldom fails to gi\ e a horse cold. 



20 THE GENTLEMAN'S 



A CAUTION AGAINST CATCHING COLD. 

That is, taking him out of a warm stable, and riding into 
a river or horse-pond, at an unseasonable hour, either too 
late or too early (read page 15) ; a horse should never be 
taken out of a warm stable, on a journey, till you mount 
him to travel. 



HALTER-CAST. 

Note. The same poultice will also cure the fetlock of a 
horse that is cast in his halter, by frequently repeating. 



A CAUTION TO PREVENT FOUNDERING ON THE ROAD. 

It is the opinion of most grooms, that a horse heats his 
legs and feet upon a hard road, especially if he is a heavy 
horse, or carries a great weight, and that he should be re- 
freshed and cooled by washing. To which I agree ; but 
then it must be with warm water, for that cools best. This 
will not only open the pores and make his legs perspire, but 
will clear the fetlock joints best, of any gravel that may get 
in between the wrinkles, and thus fret and inflame his legs ; 
cold water naturally contracts the skin, and binds any gravel 
there may chance to be, the firmer. Stop his feet also with 
the ball, directed in page 17, but make it pretty warm. 

Note. A horse, in this case, ought to have a large stall, 
that he may stretch his legs. Young horses require larger 
stalls than old ones 5 for an accustomed old horse will ease 
himself in a stall of five feet wide, as well as in one of two 
yards. 

A COUGH. 

If, after a day or two, you perceive a running at his eyes, 
and a little gleeting at his nostrils, you may expect to hear 
him cough. In that case, take a pint of blood from his neck, 
in the morning (a horse will travel notwithstanding, if you 
do not exceed a pint), and at noon give an additional feed, 
to make amends for the loss of blood. 



POCKET-FARRIER. 21 

At night, give him a mash, over and above his usua. 
allowance. The next night give him the aniseed cordial 
as before. 



A GREAT COUGH. 

If his cough continue three days, you must take another 
pint of blood from his neck, and try to remove it with abler 
medicines. Therefore, to keep it off his lungs, give him, 
just before you go to bed, 



THE CURE. 

Liquorice powder, an ounce ; sweet oil, a spoonful ; 
iEthiop's mineral, an ounce 5 balm of sulphur, half an ounce 5 
made into a ball with a little honey. 

Clothe and keep him warm. Repeat the ball next night, 
which will be sufficient to cure any new gotten cold or 
surfeit. 



KNOTTED BETWEEN THE JAWS. — THE CURE. 

Feel between the jaws ; and, if his kernels are swelled, 
do not let the farrier cut them out with a pair of red-hot 
scissors (as some of them do), but dissolve them with two or 
three or more turnip poultices, and continue the aniseed 
cordial, till he is well. 

If the almonds of a man's ears were down, that is, if the 
glands were swelled, and the surgeon proposed to cut them 
out for a cure, you would treat him with great contempt for 
his ignorance. It is the same with respect to a horse. 

Note. The horse's throat ought to be kept warm with 
cloths, till the swelling is either dissolved or come to a head ; 
if the latter, any common farrier may open the tumour with 
a sharp penknife ; and when the matter has free discharge, 
the wound will easily heal, by the use of the horse-ointment 
applied warm. 

I will next mention the eyes ; for it is as bad for a horse 
to be blind as to be lame. 



22 THE GENTLEMAN'S 



A COLD IN THE EYES. 

When a horse has got cold, it sometimes falls into his 
eyes, which you may know by the symptoms before men- 
tioned, in page 19, a running - or a thick glare upon them 3 
put your hand to his nostrils, and if you find his breath hotter 
than usual, it will then be necessary to take a little blood 
from his neck. 



A CAUTION IN BLEEDING. 

It is a common thing with some farriers to take two, 
three, and sometimes four, quarts of blood away at one time. 
I am very much against that practice ; because you rob a 
horse of more animal spirits than you can restore in a long 
time, without much rest and high feeding ; the latter ot 
which is diametrically opposite to the cure. 

BLEED BY MEASURE. 

Therefore, a pint, or a quart at most, unless it is very 
thirk or very hot, will be sufficient ; it is safer to take a 
gallon at five or six bleedings, than two quarts at once, for 
the reason above. Let me advise you, also, to take it by 
measure, I mean in a pint or a quart pot ; for when you 
bleed at random upon the ground, you never can know 
what quantity you take, nor what quality his blood is of. 
From such violent methods, used with ignorance, proceed 
the death of half the horses in the nation. 

What proof must a farrier, a groom, or a coachman, give 
of his skill, to administer to a horse a comfortable drink, as 
they call it, composed of diapente, long pepper, grains of 
paradise, and the rest of the hot ingredients, at a time when 
his blood is boiling in his veins ? It is like giving a man 
burnt brandy in a fever. I say, by knowing the true state 
of your horse's blood you can better judge what medicines 
are most proper to give him. 

Therefore, a pint of blood, for the first time, is enough ; 
and you may repeat that as you see occasion. But you 
cannot easily restore, as I said, the blood and spirits you 
have been too lavish of. 



POCKET-FARRIER. 23 



A POULTICE FOR THE EYES, 

After you have taken a pint of blood, get a quartern loaf, 
hot out of the oven, cut away the crust, and put the soft 
inside into a linen bag, large enough to cover his forehead 
and temples ; press it flat, and bind it on, byway of poultice, 
as hot as may be, without scalding} at the same time, fasten 
something of a cloth about his neck, to keep his throat warm. 
Let the poultice stay on till it is almost cold, and repeat it 
once or twice ; then prepare the following 

EYE-WATER. 

Into half a pint of rose or spring water put one dram of 
tutty, finely prepared, one dram of white sugar candy, pow- 
dered, and half a dram of sugar of lead. With a feather put 
a drop into each eye, mornings and evenings. 

A CAUTION AGAINST EYE-POWDERS 

Never blow any powder into the eyes ; — 'always use 
liquids. The next day, if needful, repeal the poultice ; and, 
for want of a hot loaf, at any time, make a poultice of bread 
boiled in milk, continuing the eye-water every day. You 
may use the turnip poultice, but you must not put grease 
into it. Never let grease or oil come near the eyes. 

A PHILM.— THE CURE. 

If a philm grows over the eye, put a scruple of white vitriol 
and a scruple of roach-alum, both finely powdered, into half 
a quartern of spring water 5 and with a feather put a drop 
into the eye, mornings and evenings, and it will eat it clean 
off in three days or thereabouts 5 but be not prevailed on to 
blow flint and glass, pounded together, into the eyes 5 be- 
cause the sharp points of the glass wound all the tender 
blood vessels, and cause an inexpressibly painful inflam- 
mation, not much inferior, and full as insignificant, as the 
farrier's way of burning a thousand holes in the skin with a 
red hot poker, to cure the farcy. Gelding and docking are 
but little help to bad eyes. 



24 the gentleman's 

CAUTION AGAINST BLINDNESS. 

Blistering the temples, cutting out the haws, and taking up 
the veins, weaken the optics, and hasten blindness. 



OBSERVATIONS ON WASHY HORSES. 

It is observed, some horses carry a good belly all the 
journey ; others part with their food before it is well digest- 
ed, and scour all the way, which makes them so thin ana 
lank, that they are ready to slip through their guts ; they 
are called washy. 

Such horses must be chiefly fed with dry meat; that is, 
oats and beans, and but very seldom with bran. 

They also will eat as much or rather more than other 
horses, and you si ould feed them oftener ; for, being too 
soon empty, they require it ; and, if you will allow them 
enough, they will perform a tolerable good journey ; but I 
do not recommend such an one. 



REMEMBER TO FEED. 

If you do not gallop your horse off his wind, I will venture 
to say, it is not the journey that hurts him, but your neglect 
of him when you dismount. Consider, he is tied up, and 
can hau§ nothing but what is brought to him, for he cannot 
help himself; and if you do not cause him to be properly 
attended, a dog that wanders about fares better than the 
horse that carried you so well ; and since he cannot ask for 
what he wants, you must supply every thing. 

DIRECTIONS FOR FEEDING. 

When you end the day's journey, fill your horse's belly as 
soon as you can, that he may go to rest, and he will be the 
fresher for it in the morning. It is an old observation, that 
young men eat and sleep better than old ; but old horses eat 
and sleep better than young. 

Give two or three little feeds, instead of a large one ; too 
much at once may cloy him. 



POCKET>FARRIER. 25 

A CORDIAL, IF FAINT UPON THE ROAD. 

If you perceive your horse travel faintly, you may give 
him at any time a pint of warm ale, with a quartern of 
brandy, rum, or geneva in it, or an ounce of diapente in it. 
Diapente will comfort his bowels, drive out cold and wind, 
and may cause him to carry his food the longer. 

GRIPES. 

If your horse is taken with the gripes, which he will dis- 
cover to you by often looking towards his flanks, and cannot 
keep upon his legs, but rolls and beats himself about, seem- 
ing, as undoubtedly he is, in very great misery— 

CAUTION AGAINST A DRENCH. 

The farrier, after he has bled him, will bring you a pint 
of beef brine, mixed with a quart of the grounds of stale 
beer, to drench him with ; then a glyster of the same 5 and, 
if that do not cure him, Adieu ! Nothing but a horse could 
live, after having such a composition forced into his stomach. 

THE CURE. — A GLYSTER. 

Do not bleed him, unless his breath is very hot, but clothe 
him warm immediately, and with a horn give him half a pint 
of brandy, and as much sweet oil, mixed ; then trot him 
about till he is a little warm, which will certainly cure some 
horses. If it does not your's, boil one ounce of beaten 
pepper in a quart of milk ; put half a pound of butter, and 
two or three ounces of salt, into a bowl or basin, and brew 
them together 5 give it rather warmer than usual ; it will 
purge him in half an hour or thereabouts, and perhaps re- 
move the fit. If it does not, omit half the pepper, and give 
the same in quantity and quality, by way of glyster ; adding, 
as it cools, the yolks of four eggs. If this has the good 
effect that is wished for, you must nurse him up till he gets 
his strength again ; but, if neither will do, boil a pound of 
aniseed in two quarts of ale, brew it upon a pound of honey ; 
when it is almost cool enough, put in two ounces of diascor- 

3 



26 the gentleman's 

dium, and give it, with a horn, at three doses, allowing about 
half an hour between each dose. If this fit abates, give him 
time to recover himself. 



WORMS OR BOTS. 

If all this does not give him ease, and if you have a sus- 
picion of worms or bots breeding in his guts, which, indeed, 
may be the cause (for they sometimes fasten in the passage 
from the stomach into the great gut, and stop it, and so tor- 
ment him till he dies — I have seen it in dissections), then 
give him two ounces of ^Ethiop's mineral, made into a ball, 
with an ounce of powder of aniseed, and a spoonful of 
honey. 

A CAUTION. 

N. B. But you must not give this to a mare with foal. 
You may bleed her in the roof of the mouth j it is to be 
hoped some of these things will hit. 

STAGGERS. 

Do not let your horse stand too long without exercise ; it 
fills his belly too full of meat, and his veins too full of blood. 
From hence the staggers, and many other distempers. 

THE CURE. 

The cure is to bleed and purge. 

GRAZING. 

Thin skinned horses, that have been well kept and clothed, 
should never be turned to grass above three months in the 
year, viz. from the beginning of June to the end of August. 

Thick skinned horses have strong coats, which keep out 
the weather 5 and, if well fed, will lie abroad, and endure 
hard hunting all the year, better than stable horses. For 
walking about to feed prevents stiffness in their limbs ; and 



POCKET-FARRIER. 27 

treading in the grass keeps their hoofs moist and cool : but 
they should have a hovel to come to at night, or when it 
snows or rains. 

Never purge a horse just taken from grass ; it dissolves or 
loosens some tender fat or humours, which fall into his legs 
or heels. But after six days you may bleed him once, under 
a quart ; and at night give him the aniseed cordial (see page 
16), which is a gentle opener. 



O COLD WATER WITH PHYSIC. 

If you needs must purge your horse, for which I would 
have a good reason given, lot him not touch cold water with- 
in or without, till the day after it has done working ; but you 
cannot give him too much warm water ; I wish he would 
drink enough, for the sake of dilution. 

A PURGE. 

Aloes, one ounce ; jalap, two or three drams ; oil of 
cloves, ten drops 5 made into a ball with honey. 

CAUTION AGAINST COLD WATER. 

Some obstinate grooms will work it off with cold water ; 
and tell you, the sicker he is the better the purge works. I 
deny it 5 for cold water checks the working of all physic, 
and causes gripings. Make that groom drink cold water 
gruel with his next pills, and that will convince him. 

A purge may work the first day, but commonly does not 
till the second. I have known one lie two, nay three, days in 
a horse, and work well off at last. 



IT WORKS BY URINE. 

Sometimes it works by urine only, and then the purge 
steals off unobserved by his keeper ; upon which, he makes 
haste to give him a second 5 which, he says, is to carry off 
the first purge that has not worked with him. After giving 
the second, he takes him out of a warm stable and trots him 



28 the gentleman's 

abroad, be the weather hot or cold, till he warms him, and 
opens all the pores of his body, to make the physic work. I 
do not think it possible for a horse, with a purge or two in 
his belly, to escape catching cold by such a method, and 
must impute great injuries to it ; for, by such carelessness, 
and the want of better understanding, some horses lose an 
eye, others have irrecoverable lameness settled in their limbs, 
and many die. Then they tell you his liver was rotten, and 
his lungs (upon opening) all inflamed. 



PURGE WITHIN DOORS. 

How can any gentleman be satisfied for the loss of a good 
horse, with such an ignorant account, so contrary to the 
rules of physic and even common sense ? An understanding 
man, when he has given his horse a purge, will not stir him 
out of the stable till it has done working ; for there is really 
no need of exercise during the operation, because every 
purge will carry itself off", if you keep him warm, and supply 
him with warm mashes, and warm water as he pleases to 
drink, and as often. 

TO STOP VIOLENT PURGINGS. 

When a purge works too long or too strong upon him, 
which will weaken him too much, give him an ounce of 
Venice treacle, in a pint of warm ale, and repeat it, if need- 
ful, to blunt the force of the aloes. 

All the keepers at Newmarket bleed and purge the run- 
ning horses pretty often; and all the gentlemen m England 
agree with them in doing so. The reason given for it is, to 
carry off the humours, which cause their legs to swell and 
grow stiff, and to clean them. The reason is good, because 
no horse is fit to run that is not clean : but bleeding and 
purging weaken both man and beast ; besides the hazard 
of a horse's life in every purge, as I have demonstrated. 
Would it not, therefore, be a good amendment to get quit 
of those superfluous humours another way, so as to prevent 
stiff and swelled legs, without bleeding and purging ? Would 
not a horse come into the field with better advantage, who, 



POCKET-FARRIER. 29 

instead of bleeding and purging only once a week, takes a 
medicine that effectually cleans his body — keeps his legs 
from swelling and stiffness — mends his wind by opening his 
lungs, and preserves him in his full vigor ? I am sure all 
this can be done with very little bleeding, and no purging ; 
which I would willingly insert here, did it properly belong to 
this treatise, which (as I said) is intended only for the use 
and convenience of travellers. 

IF A HORSE LOOKS ILL. — THE LAMPARS. — THE CURE. 

If your horse, who once looked fat and sleek, is brought to 
you with a staring coat and hollow flank, open his mouth, 
look on the roof, and, if the gums next his fore teeth are 
swelled higher than his teeth, it will hinder his feeding, and 
make him fall of his flesh. Let a smith burn it down with a 
hot iron ; that is a complete cure for the lampars. 

If that is not the case, you should never cease inquiring, 
till you have found it 5 for the horse cannot speak 5 and if the 
groom is in fault, he will not tell. 

TAKE CARE OF YOUR HAY AND OATS. 

If you suspect that the groom does not give him your al- 
lowance, it behoves you to take care that you have thirty- 
six trusses in each load of hay, as well as eight bushels in 
every quartern of oats, and that they are not brewed ; for 
there are some men that can turn oats into ale. 

BROKEN WIND. 

If a groom gallop his horse, when he is full of water, he 
will tell you it is to warm the water in his belly ; from hence 
often comes a broken wind. Make that fellow drink a 
draught of small beer or water, and force him to run two or 
three hundred yards upon it : I believe it will cure him of 
that opinion. 

If a horse in his stall, when the groom comes towards him, 
shifts from side to side, and is afraid of every motion the 
man makes about him, it is a shrewd sign that the groom 

3* 



30 THE GENTLEMAN S 

beats him in your absence ; and a fellow that will beat a 
horse, will sell his provender. 



There is a wrong judged custom amongst our professors, 
concerning rowels. If a horse is sick they bleed him, right 
or wrong — give him a drench, and put a rowel under his 
belly ; without inquiring of his master or keeper what usage 
he has lately had, which might occasion the illness. Rowels 
are absolutely necessary in some cases, but are absolutely 
unnecessary in others, and serve only to disfigure and tor- 
ment a horse. As for example — 

The rowel in the navel for the grease, which you may see 
in almost all the coach and cart horses about town, is very 
wrong 5 because rowels, in a horse that is greased, promote 
too great a discharge from the blood and animal spirits, 
which weaken him to a degree of irrecoverable poverty. I 
have put five rowels in a horse at one time, thinking thus to 
let the grease run off; but the more the rowels run, the more 
he run at the heels, till the texture of his blood was so 
broken, that I could not recover him. This convinced me 
it was the wrong way to cure the grease. I have heard it 
said amongst learned physicians, that too many setons or 
issues will draw a man into a consumption. In my opinion, 
rowels will do the same thing by a horse, as they are of the 
like nature and effect. 

THE FARCIN. 

The farcin proceeds from a stagnation of blood in the 
capillary or hair-like vessels, which corrupts, and breaks 
through into buds, or vents itself at the heels or frush. 
Colds, hard exercise, high feeding, &c, will occasion this. 

RUNNING AT THE HEELS OR FRUSH. 

Farriers ignorantly endeavor to stop a running at the 
heels or frush, by applying bole ammoniac, alum, vitriol, 
lime-water, and verdigris, which are quite contrary to the 
cure j for all styptics repel the sharp distillation, which 



POCKET-FARRIER. 31 

should have a free passage ; else the limbs will swell to a 
very great degree; and must, in time, fall and burst out 
again in such a tide as will be hard to stem'. For stopping 
is not curing. See page 12. 

Four parts in five of our farriers maintain that the farcin 
lies between the flesh and the skin. Why then does not 
roweling cure it ? But it does not lie between the flesh and 
the skin ; therefore, roweling never did, nor ever can, cure 
it. For example — 

Before the buds break out, the veins cord ; which is a 
strong presumption that the distemper hath its origin in the 
blood ; because there is its first appearance. Besides, take 
a pint of blood from the neck of any horse, whose veins are 
corded any where about him, and it will show its corruption 
as soon as it is cold. Now, bleeding checks the distemper ; 
whereas, if you did not bleed it would break out in every 
part about him, from the ears to the soles of his feet ; even 
in the corners of his eyes, his yard, and the very inside of 
his hoofs, or wherever there are any blood vessels. 

These demonstrations oblige me to believe the distemper 
does not lie in the skin, but in the veins ; but the most sub- 
stantial proof is the cure, which I can perfect without touch- 
ing the buds, or making the least outward application. 

A DESCRIPTION OF FIRING. 

The generality of our present farriers fire ; that is, they 
draw, with a red hot iron, a circle, like a magic spell, round 
the buds, burning half through the skin. This, they say, 
stops the spreading ; and is called firing. Then, into every 
oud they thrust the end of a red hot poker, burning the bud 
to the bottom, which is accounted by them a complete cure 
for the farcin ; but I should rather take it to be a description 
of the last punishment allotted for wicked men. Who can 
imagine that a red hot iron would correct the blood, and 
cure a distemper ? 

To cure the farcin — take half an ounce of Roman vitriol, 
boiled in a pint of chamber-ley, two pennyworth of turpen- 
tine, two pennyworth of bole ammoniac, and a handful of 
rue. Give it inwardly, and repeat the dose, if requisite. 



32 the gentleman's 

A DESCRIPTION OF THE GLANDERS. 

The glanders proceed from severe, repeated colds, such 
as are taken at winter grass ; and, by lying long upon the 
lungs and glands, corrupt the blood, and produce that un- 
happy consequence of running at the nostrils. 

The mourning of the chine is downright poverty of flesh 
and blood, which the severity of the distemper, that is, cold, 
brings on, and may be compared to the condition of a lean 
man" in a consumption; but there is no such thing as the 
running of the spinal marrow at the nostrils, as many affirm ; 
for the vessel that contains the spinal marrow is composed 
of the same coats that inclose the brain, and is continued 
from the brain, without disjunction, through the neck and 
shin bones, till it ends in the dock, so that there is not the 
least communication between the spinal marrow and the 
nostril ; it is the same in the human bodies. 



TO DISCOVER A FEVER. 

Would you know when a horse is in a fever, there is a 
pulse a little above the knee, in the inside of his leg, which 
may be felt in thick skinned horses ; but the best and surest 
way is, to put your hand to his nostrils, and discover it by 
the heat of his breath. 



GLYSTERS. 

There is a time, in some fevers, when it is dangerous to 
bleed or purge ; then glysters are of excellent use, I must 
say, absolutely necessary ; but not one in a thousand will 
give themselves the trouble to relieve the poor sick creature, 
in that way ; for two reasons — first, few people know when 
a horse is in a fever. 

A GLYSTER IN A FEVER. 

Secondly, they seldom are provided with so material an 
instrument as a glyster pipe ; therefore, for the sake of the 
creature, and those that love him, the following glyster, in a 



POCKET-FARRIER. 33 

fever, is as good as an} r , and as little trouble. But first, be- 
speak, at a pewterer's, a pipe, eight or ten inches long, with 
a bore large enough to receive the end of your finger, and a 
rim at one end of this pipe, that what you tie on may not 
slip off". Then boil a spoonful of oatmeal in two quarts of 
water, together with two ounces of senna, and half a pound 
of brown sugar, half a pint of sweet oil, and a handful of salt. 
Get a bladder at an apothecary's or butcher's, that will con- 
tain the above said quantity, and tie its neck to the pipe : 
pour the glyster with a funnel through the pipe into the blad- 
der, and give it blood warm, setting the horse's hinder parts 
highest. Keep him quiet in the stable till he voids it ; the 
longer it stays with him the better ; but you need not tie his 
tail down to his fundament : it is ridiculous to think that will 
detain it a moment. 



SWELLED NECK. 

If a farrier, in bleeding, miss the vein, do not let him 
strike his fleam a second time into the same place ; because 
it sometimes makes the neck swell, and proves troublesome 
to cure ; and as the extravasated blood infallibly makes the 
neck swell, and the jugular vein rot quite away, from the 
orifice up to the jaw bone, and down almost to the shoulder, 
(which may prove the loss of your horse), he should take 
rare, in the pinning, that he leaves not a drop of blood be- 
tween the flesh and the skin. 



BLEED HIGH IN THE NECK. 

(Note. The nearer the throat you bleed him, the better. 
The vein is not so apt to swell into a knot, as if bled lower.) 

THE CURE. 

The turnip poultice makes the best cure ; but if the neck 
should happen to be extremely bad, and a tumour should 
form, when you feel matter fluctuate under your finder, it is 
best to open it and give it a free discharge, and dress it with 
the horse ointment, keeping the neck elevated. 



34 the gentleman's pocket-farrier. 

A horse after bleeding should not eat hay for half a day, 
lest the motion of the muscles should bring on an inflamma- 
tion and swelling. 

DOCKING. 

It seldom happens that we dock a horse upon a journey ; 
but permit me to give a caution on that subject, here. In 
docking a horse, never put under his tail the knife or instru- 
ment which is to cut it off; because you then must strike the 
tail, which will bruise it, and it will be apt to mortify, which 
is the reason so many horses die with docking ; but lay his 
tail next the block, and, at one blow, drive the knife through 
a joint if possible j stand prepared with a hot iron, to sear 
the end of a dock, and stop the bleeding. 

NEVER DRAW A SOLE. 

Never draw a horse's soles on any pretence whatever. 
There is no hurt or wound in the cask of the foot but may 
be come at ; and it is the reverse of a cure for a founder, 
though the farriers always do it. A man may help a foun- 
dered horse, but I never knew one cured. 

I have now mentioned most of the common accidents, and 
have taken care, that, under some of those heads, you may 
find a great deal of help, by the analogy they have to one 
another ; in short, I have mentioned more than is necessary 
on a journey. 



No. 218 Market street, 

HAS JUST PUBLISHED, 



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&THE BIBLE COMPANION, designed far || 

)M. the assistance of Bible Classes, Famili' -=, and £& 

$]& Young Students of the Scriptures, illustrated j^ 

YJV with engravings. From the last London edi- A 

^A tion. Revised and adapted to the present U 

^ times, with an introduction, by Stephen H. ^ 

II Tyng, D. D., Rector of St. Paul's Church, |\ 

^ Philadelphia. |? 

ih I have carefully read the Companion to the Bible, in- di 
»g tended for Bible Classes, families, and young; persons in si« 
|J| general — and approve of it very highly. I have found |b 
^i> it full of important instructions, well arranged, clearly ^ 
TO expressed, and beautifully illustrated. The extent and m 
4 variety, the learning and piety of the book are sufficient ,i. 
W to satisfy the reasonable expectation of the readers of M 
vf such a work. . §g 

f\^ I think the book is well adapted to aid the scholar in <$? 
^ tbe Bible Class or the private reader — and is fully enti- $jv 
'!' tied to a place in the family Library. Every Sabbath M' 
\b, School teacher should 1 have a copy of it, and it should M 
W be found in every Sabbath School Library. The out- $$ 
|I| lines for Bible Class instruction in the fifth page should §0* 
m be transferred to the cover of every Bible. 
m By giving this book to the A merican public, you con- m 
ih fer a precious benefit as far and as wide as you give it «|» 
^ circulation. THOS. M'AULEY, D. D. ^ 

f£ VIRGINIA .HOUSEWIFE. * l| 

^KIRKHAM'S GRAMMAR. || 



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